Leocadia Bongben
10 October 2008
Female detainees in the Ebolowa Central Prison have described the hygienic conditions of the prison as deplorable.
The inmates spoke to The Post recently during a visit to the Prison by Sports and Physical Education Minister, Augustin Edjoa.A female inmate at the prison told The Post that their major problem was the poor sanitary conditions in which they live. She explained that the toilets are blocked and that they are forced to empty their bowels in dishes before disposing their waste in another place.
The situation, The Post learnt, is appalling and fears are rife that there could be an outbreak of contagious diseases considering that the inmates face a similar situation.Addressing the Sports Minister, the about 300 inmates appealed that the prison sanitary conditions be improved upon.
They also expressed the desire to have a satellite dish that would enable them live their days in prison pleasurably amongst others without making sanitation a problem.Edjoa, during the visit, provided the inmates with a television set, balls, jerseys and food stuff.
The Post also learnt that foodstuff and other gift items offered to inmates were stolen by prison officials. Against this backdrop, some of the female attendants insisted that foodstuff provided for the inmates be shared amongst them or cooked on a special day for them.
The Secretary of State in the Ministry of Justice and Keeper of the Seals in charge of the Penitentiary Administration, Emmanuel Ngafeson, recently during a training of prison officials organised in collaboration with the National School of Magistracy, ENAM, acknowledged that the right to health and feeding were not yet a reality in prisons. .
He confirmed that despite the increase in the allocation for food in prisons, the right of prisoners to adequate feeding is still far-fetched. He remarked that generally, the rights of prisoners are most often trampled on through the difficult prison conditions.
It is a known fact that the conditions in Cameroon prisons are very appalling. This situation is exacerbated by the torture meted out to prisoners as depicted in the Yaounde Central Prison in the section known as Kosovo.
It was against this background that Ngafeson reminded the participants that while in prison, the prisoners only lose their right to freedom and insisted on the fact that other rights should be respected.
Equally recognising that the prisons are very old, he commended the efforts of the European Union in assisting the government to ameliorate the ten prisons in Cameroon. He announced that two prisons will be constructed in Douala, where there is still a search for land, and Yaoundé in Mbankomo.
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